http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100815/ap_on_he_me/us_med_teen_sex_academics

Teen sex not always bad for school performance



By ALICIA CHANG, AP Science Writer Alicia Chang, Ap Science Writer

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1 hr 31 mins ago






LOS ANGELES – There's good news for parents who worry
that their teenagers' sex lives are affecting their school performance:
A provocative new study has found that teens in committed relationships
do no better or worse in school than those who don't have sex.


The same isn't true for teens who "hook up."
Researchers found that those who have casual flings get lower grades and
have more school-related problems compared with those who abstain.


The findings, presented Sunday at a meeting of the
American Sociological Association in Atlanta, challenge to some extent
assumptions that sexually active teens tend to do poorer in school.


It's not so much whether a teen has sex that
determines academic success, the researchers say, but the type of sexual
relationship they're engaged in. Teens in serious relationships may
find social and emotional support in their sex partners, reducing their
anxiety and stress levels in life and in school.


"This should give some comfort to parents who may be
concerned that their teenage son or daughter is dating," said
sociologist Peggy Giordano of Bowling Green State University, who had no
role in the research. Teen sex is "not going to derail their
educational trajectories," she said.


Last year, nearly half of high school students
reported having sexual intercourse, and 14 percent have had four or more
partners, according to a federal survey released this summer.


For the study, University of California, Davis
sociologist Bill McCarthy and University of Minnesota sociologist Eric
Grodsky analyzed surveys and school transcripts from the largest
national follow-up study of teens that began during the 1994-95 academic
year. The researchers said not much has changed in terms of when teens
first have sex or attitudes toward teen sex in the past decade.


The duo examined how teens' sexual behaviors affected
their learning and controlled for factors that might influence their
results.


Among the findings:


_Teens in serious relationships did not differ from
their abstinent counterparts in terms of their grade-point average, how
attached they are to school or college expectations. They were also not
more likely to have problems in school, be suspended or absent.


_Compared with virgins, teens who have casual sex had
lower GPAs, cared less about school and experienced more problems in
school. For example, female teens who have flings had GPAs that were
0.16 points lower than abstinent teens. Male teens who have casual sex
had GPAs that were 0.30 points lower than those who do not have sex.
Teens who hook up also were at greater risk of being suspended or
expelled and had lower odds of expecting to go to college.


_Teens who have sex — whether it's a serious or
casual relationship — were at higher risk of being truant and dropping
out compared with teens who don't have sex. The researchers said the
dropout results should be interpreted with caution because the numbers
were small.


"Having sex outside of a romantic relationship may
exacerbate the stress youths experience, contributing to problems in
school," Grodsky said.


In a statement, the Family Research Council said the
study confirms what the group has long advocated about the negative
consequences of casual sex.


But the council said it "would not interpret less
severe educational impacts on students involved in `committed' sexual
relationships as a green light for comprehensive" sex education.


University of Southern California sociologist Julie
Albright disagreed. She said it might be time to revamp sex education to
"emphasize the importance of relationships and spell out the
consequences of casual sex."


The study dispels the notion that all teen sex is bad, said Marie Harvey, professor of public health at Oregon State University.


"The type of relationship really matters. When it
comes to sexual behavior, it takes two to tango," said Harvey, adding
that safe sex should be practiced to prevent teen pregnancy and sexually
transmitted diseases.

Very interesting...

tmontyb wrote:

The study dispels the notion that all teen sex is bad, said Marie Harvey, professor of public health at Oregon State University.

That woman's dumb. lol How does it dispel the notion, because it doesn't always hamper school performance while the relationship is still going on? Oh goodie, I feel so much better now.

Seriously, there's much more to the idea that teens shouldn't be having sex than school performance. I haven't even really heard school performance forwarded as a reason as to why they shouldn't(especially when the relationship is still on). That kind of makes this entire article a moot point, aside from the idea that it does discourage hook-ups.

So I'd hardly call this interesting. It's predictable "duh" material that really doesn't speak to the true problems behind teen sex at all. It seems a petty attempt to pretty up the idea of teen sex using some pretty juvenile logic. "Oh, it doesn't hurt their studies so it must be good."

Very interesting read.

Quote :

Seriously, there's much more to the idea that teens shouldn't be having sex than school performance. I haven't even really heard school performance forwarded as a reason as to why they shouldn't(especially when the relationship is still on). That kind of makes this entire article a moot point, aside from the idea that it does discourage hook-ups.

Well said, I totally agree with that.